No. 13 Canyons Eliminated From SoCal Regionals by No. 20 San Diego Miramar
By Mari Kneisel/COC Sports Information
No. 13 College of the Canyons had its season come to an end Wednesday afternoon in the first round of the 3C2A Southern California Regional Playoffs, at the hands of No. 20 San Diego Miramar College in a 3-1 result.
Despite outshooting Miramar 27-10 the Cougars could not quite find the results they worked for. COC freshman Bailey Williamson worked for eight shots, Victoria Martinez had seven and Felicia Marquez finished with five.
There was no shortage of opportunity for the Cougars, however Miramar's goalkeeper Sydney Puga stood strong for the Jets.
Puga backed her team for the full 90 minutes making several critical saves, recording a total of 15 in the match. She also received more than a little help from her teammates as they stopped the ball from crossing the goal line three times.
COC sophomore Hayley Bench (12-4-2) backed the Cougars for the last time, recording three saves in her 90 minutes and allowing three goals.
Canyons controlled the first half but could not seem to put one past Puga leading to a 0-0 score coming into the second half.
The Cougars almost found the back of the net in the first few minutes of the second half, however seconds after, Miramar flew down the field on a counter attack with Jaedyn Thibedeau finding the back of the net for her 27th goal of the season.
The Jets held their 1-0 lead until the 71st minute when COC freshman Amy Fimbres fought for the ball and hammered it to the far left of the goal, just out of each of Puga's gloves. This was Fimbres' third goal of the season.
Canyons continued to challenge Miramar's defense, however the Jets broke free on another counter attack where Thibedeau received a ball right down the middle and slotted passed Bench for the go-ahead goal, her 28th on the season.
With 10 minutes to go in the game, the Cougars saw three more chances to even the score but just couldn't quite push it over the line.
However, in the final minute of play, the Jets solidified their victory with a run down the field from Thibedeau where she crossed the ball for Ysabell Ettleman to receive and put away for the final score of the 3-1 result.
Canyons finishes the season with an overall record of 14-5-2, going 10-2-2 in the Western State Conference, South Division. The postseason berth was the program's 13th straight appearance in the SoCal Regionals.
Overall, the Cougars produced 50 goals with Martinez leading the way with her 14. Ashley Striegel claimed seven of those and Williamson and Marquez were responsible for six each.
Stay up to date on all this season's action by following the College of the Canyons Athletic department on social media at @COCathletics on X, Instagram, Facebook and YouTube.
—Photo by Carla Sophia Velasco/COC Sports Information